Weven though we are constantly talking about new gadgets and software, we often ignore the batteries that provide the juice to power them. Likewise, the batteries in our laptops are one of the most important parts that are often overlooked in high octane discussions involving RAM and GPUs. Still, some battery related issues keep popping up regularly - Do I have to keep my laptop plugged in at all times? Do I have to completely drain my laptop battery before charging it?
Well, the answer to this question is not that simple. Before I solve this question, let me tell you some facts about your laptop battery that will help you figure out the answer.
Here are some battery basics!
Most laptop batteries are lithium-ion or lithium-polymer. These batteries are designed to withstand many charge cycles. These batteries cannot be overcharged, which means that as soon as they are 100% charged, they stop charging. These batteries stop receiving power which is bypassed directly to your laptop's power supply. So keeping it plugged in will not damage your battery and make a lot of difference to the overall battery life. But there are other critical factors which we will discuss later.
Another concept to keep in mind is that there are certain best practices that extend the battery life of your laptop. Your battery has a finite number of charge-discharge cycles, so fully discharging it repeatedly will adversely affect its life.
Overheating is your battery's biggest enemy!
You will be surprised to know that overheating is the most critical factor when it comes to extended battery life. We told you above that keeping your laptop plugged in won't kill your battery. True. But you also need to be careful of excessive heating caused by computer hardware.
So, if your laptop's CPU / hard drive temperature is around 40 ° C, keep the laptop trendy is finee. But, if your laptop has a removable battery and you want to use your laptop extensively, you are advised to remove the battery from the socket.
Recommended: How to keep your computer from overheating
So what should I do? What's the final answer?
These days, not all laptops come with removable batteries. So removing the battery from the outlet to cool it down is not a viable option. Instead, there is an easy method that can help you extend your battery life in a different way. According to tests carried out by Battery university, a 100% charged battery will only have 300 to 500 discharge cycles. On the other hand, if it is 70-80% charged, it will get 1000-2000 recharge cycles.
Based on what I told you in this article, here are some notable points:
Avoid fully discharging your laptop after charging it. The best thing to do is to try to keep the battery level between 40 and 80%.
Make sure your laptop is not getting too hot and your cooling fan is working properly.
Your laptop battery cannot "overcharge" and injure itself due to overcharge. It's smart enough to bypass the charge energy.
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Also read: How to charge your phone battery from another smartphone
